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331. Migration brokerage, illegality, and the state in Anglophone Cameroon

Author:
Maybritt Jill Alpes
Publication Date:
08-2013
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
Migration brokers are important participants in the increasingly commercialized policing of borders. Focusing on connections between migration brokers and state authorities, a new DIIS Working Paper by Maybritt Jill Alpes asks how migration brokers relate to the realm of the law, as well as how the law relates to migration brokerage. By examining illegality only when it becomes visible to aspiring migrants and brokers in the context of departure, the paper illuminates how state regulation is intimately intertwined with the emergence of migration brokerage. The argument of the paper provides a counter-point to studies of migration and illegality that often adopt an implicitly statist perspective by categorising brokers as either legal or illegal, as well as by framing brokers as agents that work 'against' the state. The paper draws on case material from Anglophone Cameroon, in the work of two NGOs that engage in so-called 'travel consultations'. It contributes to on-going discussions within the 'Migration Industry and Markets for Migration Control Network'.
Topic:
Crime, Migration, Non-Governmental Organization, Immigration, Law Enforcement, and Law
Political Geography:
Cameroon

332. Innovative Immigration and Border Control Reform

Author:
Stephanie Sanok Kostro and Scott F. Mann
Publication Date:
08-2013
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
Abstract:
Over the last 10 years, the United States placed great emphasis on securing its borders and improving its immigration process. Concerns about terrorism in the shadow of the September 11, 2001, attacks led to the creation of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as a means for streamlining and improving the government's ability to protect the United States, its citizens, and its infrastructure inside the nation's borders. From intelligence gathering and sharing to interdiction and apprehension, the goal was to bring all of the essential homeland security agencies in to one federal department and reduce the characteristically disparate and disconnected nature of previous homeland security agencies and responsibilities. Despite attempts to improve efficiency and efficacy, regulating the U.S. border and enforcing U.S. immigration policies remain significant challenges. The complexity of operations required to achieve the stated policy goals of the U.S. government, combined with the sheer volume of border traffic (licit and illicit, human and trade), hampered past attempts at effective border control, and cloud the potential for success of future operational undertakings.
Topic:
Security, Defense Policy, Migration, Terrorism, Immigration, and Infrastructure
Political Geography:
United States

333. English-Taught Master's Programs in Europe

Publication Date:
09-2013
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Institute of International Education (IIE)
Abstract:
In recent years, European countries in which English is not the primary language of instruction have developed an increasing number of programs taught either fully or partly in English in order to serve domestic demand for higher education in English and to attract students from around the world. In an IIE briefing paper published in 2012, we looked at trends related to English-taught master's programs in Europe. We were able to gain new insights into the types of programs that were on offer, as well as the types of programs international students were looking for. This paper takes another look at data from StudyPortals.eu, the most comprehensive website related to educational offerings in Europe, in order to get a sense of where the market is going. In 2011, StudyPortals estimated that 90 percent of English-taught master's programs in Europe were represented on the website, which makes it a remarkably accurate reflection of the situation on the ground.
Topic:
Education, Markets, International Affairs, Labor Issues, and Immigration
Political Geography:
Europe

334. Right-wing nationalism in Russia: A by-product of electoral competition or a political agenda for the future?

Author:
Maria Nozhenko
Publication Date:
09-2013
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA)
Abstract:
Debates on nationalism acquired a great deal of significance in Russia in the summer of 2013, with the activities of right-wing nationalists increasing during this period too. Modern Russian nationalism has its roots in anti-immigrant sentiments, mainly as a consequence of failed nation-state building in the post-Soviet period. Most right-wing organisations are marginalised, with membership and support relatively low. But the anti-immigrant ideas which these organisations propagate currently enjoy high levels of support in Russian society. Over the past eight years, the activities of right-wing nationalists have been largely limited to 'the streets', due to the lack of opportunities open to nationalist parties to participate in electoral processes. The prospects for Russia's right-wing nationalist organisations will depend on the regime's approach to 'illegal' immigration, but also on the state's overall policy towards right-wing nationalism. Three scenarios are seen to be possible at this juncture: 'marginalised nationalists', 'underground nationalists', and 'incorporated nationalists'.
Topic:
Nationalism, Politics, and Immigration
Political Geography:
Russia

335. Inserting Migrants Into the Global Social Protection Floor

Author:
Marie-Hélène Ratel, Gabriel Williams, and Keegan Williams
Publication Date:
09-2013
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI)
Abstract:
Unprecedented human migration is an issue of critical importance in today's rapidly globalizing world. International migrants constitute a group with more people than the population of Brazil, and they send more money home each year than the entire value of Argentina's economy (International Organization for Migration [IOM], 2013). Migration flows have doubled since 1980 and show no signs of slowing down due to growing inequalities in global development, population pressure, environmental change and conflict (Koser, 2010). Compared to the majority of citizens in many countries, migrants face heightened risks because they do not receive adequate social protections such as health care, income security, education, housing or access to clean water and sanitation.
Topic:
Economics, Migration, Social Stratification, Labor Issues, Immigration, and Sociology
Political Geography:
Brazil and Argentina

336. The Use of Public Assistance Benefits by Citizens and Non-citizen Immigrants in the United States

Author:
Leighton Ku and Brian Bruen
Publication Date:
02-2013
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Cato Institute
Abstract:
Claims are sometimes made that immigrants use public benefits, such as Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families programs, more often than those who are born in the United States. This report provides analyses, using the most recent data from the Census Bureau, that counter these claims. In reality, low-income non-citizen immigrants, including adults and children, are generally less likely to receive public benefits than those who are native-born. Moreover, when non-citizen immigrants receive benefits, the value of benefits they receive is usually lower than the value of benefits received by those born in the United States. The combination of lower average utilization and smaller average benefits indicates that the overall cost of public benefits is substantially less for low-income non-citizen immigrants than for comparable native-born adults and children. The report also explains that the lower use of public benefits by non-citizen immigrants is not surprising, since federal rules restrict immigrants' eligibility for these public benefit programs.
Topic:
Economics, Health, Humanitarian Aid, Markets, and Immigration
Political Geography:
United States

337. Regimes of Ethnicity and Nationhood in Germany, Russia, and Turkey

Author:
Ahmet T. Kuru
Publication Date:
11-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
THIS is a path-breaking book that contributes to the literature on ethnicity and nationalism from various aspects. Conceptually, it develops a typology of three regimes of ethnicity—monoethnic, multiethnic, and antiethnic. The monoethnic regime, unlike the two other types, prioritizes one ethnic group in terms of citizenship and immigration. The multiethnic regime differs from the two others by constitutionally recognizing multiple ethnic groups and even providing them territorial autonomies and some affirmative action policies. The antiethnic regime, in this regard, refuses to recognize a single or multiple ethnic identities as basis of state policy.
Topic:
Immigration
Political Geography:
Russia, Turkey, and Germany

338. The Next American Majority

Author:
William W. Chip
Publication Date:
11-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The National Interest
Abstract:
AMERICA'S CHANGING demographics, long a delicate topic, have become an increasingly prominent part of national political debate. The subject's prominence was assured when President Barack Obama won reelection with less than 40 percent of the white vote in 2012. It quickly became conventional wisdom that Mitt Romney had antagonized Hispanic voters by proposing that illegal aliens engage in "self-deportation" and that the Republican Party was committing political suicide by catering to a shrinking white voter base. Leading Republican strategists such as Karl Rove urged the GOP to change course. Writing in the Wall Street Journal, Rove announced: "If the GOP leaves nonwhite voters to the Democrats, then its margins in safe congressional districts and red states will dwindle-not overnight, but over years and decades." Rove pointed to a Georgia county where a 339 percent increase in the Hispanic population was accompanied by a drop in the Republican share of the presidential vote-from 66.4 percent in 2000 to 51.2 percent in 2012.
Topic:
Immigration and Law
Political Geography:
United States, America, and Georgia

339. A Kinder, Gentler Immigration Policy

Author:
Jagdish Bhagwati and Francisco Rivera-Batiz
Publication Date:
12-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Foreign Affairs
Institution:
Council on Foreign Relations
Abstract:
Ever since Congress passed the Immigration Reform and Control Act, in 1986, attempts at a similar comprehensive reform of U.S. immigration policies have failed. Yet today, as the Republican Party smarts from its poor performance among Hispanic voters in 2012 and such influential Republicans as former Florida Governor Jeb Bush have come out in favor of a new approach, the day for comprehensive immigration reform may seem close at hand. President Barack Obama was so confident about its prospects that he asked for it in his State of the Union address in February 2013. Now, the U.S. Senate looks poised to offer illegal immigrants a pathway to citizenship.
Topic:
Government, Immigration, and Reform
Political Geography:
United States and Syria

340. Broken Borders: Government, Foreign-Born Workers, and the U.S. Economy

Author:
Benjamin W. Powell and Zachary Gochenour
Publication Date:
09-2013
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Independent Institute
Abstract:
The U.S. government interferes with the market for foreign laborers by restricting the number and mix of immigrants and setting tight quantitative limits on foreign-born guest workers. This has created a mismatch between the demand for foreign workers from U.S. businesses and their supply, directly leading to the illegal immigration situation we confront today. The current system inefficiently limits the gains that our economy could achieve from employing larger numbers of foreign workers, and it disproportionately harms small U.S. businesses. The economic fears associated with increased guest workers or immigrants are unfounded. The current Senate immigration reform proposal would be a marginal improvement but does not go far enough. Red Card, an alternative guest worker proposal, would better coordinate labor markets. Ultimately, an immigration market free from government limitations and interference would be the most efficient solution.
Topic:
Economics, Labor Issues, Immigration, and Governance
Political Geography:
United States and North America